What to Say to Your Child About Starting Therapy

What to Say to Younger Children (Approx. ages 4–8)

“I want to talk with you about something important, and there’s nothing wrong and you’re not in trouble.

Sometimes big feelings live inside our bodies—feelings like worry, sadness, anger, or confusion—and they can be hard to understand all by ourselves.

We found someone to support us with this - kind of like a feelings coach. Just like a sports coach helps you learn a sport in fun ways, a feelings coach helps kids learn about their feelings in fun ways—like playing, drawing, talking, and using your imagination. You can bring your favorite toys or stuffed animals if you want. And you get to decide how much you want to share.

The feelings coach is there to help you feel better and to help us understand how to support you even more—because we love you so much.

We’ll go together at first, and we’ll figure it out one step at a time.”

What to Say to School-Age Kids (Approx. ages 8–10)

“I want to check in with you about something, and I really want to hear what you think.

We’ve noticed that some things have been feeling hard lately, and we care a lot about how you’re feeling inside.

Sometimes it helps to talk to someone whose job it is to help kids with feelings—kind of like a coach, but for emotions.

This is someone you can talk to, play with, draw with, or just sit with. You don’t have to talk about anything you’re not ready to talk about.

What you talk about there is private. The therapist won’t tell us your personal thoughts—just ways we can be better parents to you.

We’ll listen to your thoughts about it, and if something doesn’t feel right, we’ll figure it out together.”

What to Say to Older Kids / Tweens (10-12)

“I want to talk with you about something, and I want your opinion.

Being a kid can be hard sometimes, and we don’t expect you to figure everything out on your own.

We’re thinking about offering you someone to talk to—a therapist—who’s trained to help kids with big feelings and stress.

You’d have your own space to talk about whatever you want, at your own pace. What you share there stays private, just like a journal.

Our role is to support you, not to pry. And we want you to be part of choosing who you meet with.

You don’t have to decide anything right now. We just wanted to open the conversation.”